Road forms



y 1958 I J. F. MAINE 43,

ROAD FORMS Filed April 15, 1955 m ,5 INVENTOR.

4 v (James fl ym United States Patent ROAD FORMS James F. Maine, Euclid, Ohio, assignor t0 Consolidated Iron-Steel Manufacturing Company, Cleveland, Ohio, a corporation Application April 15, 1955, Serial No. 501,487

3 Claims. (Cl. 25-118) This invention relates to so called road forms.

In the art of making concrete or like roadways, road forms having upright walls are placed on the ground with the upright walls spaced apart and parallel and extending in the direction of the roadway; and concrete or the like is poured and spread between the walls, and the wall forms or moulds the side edges of the concrete slab or layer.

A well known type of such road forms comprises units fabricated from steel and of a chosen length, for example feet, placed end-to-end along the sides of the roadway. They are in cross section of L-shape. One leg of the L is horizontal and is laid on the ground and the other leg constitutes the said upright or vertical wall of the road form.

Such road form units usually comprise a longitudinal rail-like formation on which the wheels of a concrete spreading and surfacing machine may be rollingly supported.

The L-shaped units, on the concave side of the .L are often reinforced with braces in the form of channels known as stake boxes, and steel stakes are driven through aligned holes in the stake boxes and in the horizontal legof the L, to securely mount the units on the ground.

A series of such units is arranged in abutting end-toend relation.

The present invention relates to road forms of the general type described above.

As indicated above, :the practice in using such road forms, of .unit length, is to dispose the units end-.to-end on the -ground with their confronting ends abutting .in a

butt joint.

This :butt joint has been found to be asource of unsatisfactory, defective operation of such road forms, as follows.

Thelongitudinally aligned units as described rest upon itheground and steel stakes .aredn'ven through :them into the ground to secure the :units against shifting laterally from preselected-positions.

But at the said butt joint, the two :units may 1110i the in perfect alignment after :being secured by the stakes and ithe abutting upright walls-may not be in :a commonrplane butoflset one from the other. This will I118.k6.l1.dffii in the concrete molded by the upright walls.

Also when ithe units have rails on which thewheels of the concrete spreading machine roll, as referred .to, the rails of the adjacent .units (will be .oiiset one from theother :at-the joint and interrupt the continuity of the rail.

:Also, ithe weight of the concrete spreading machine rolling on rails on the :abutting units :as referred to, will be distributed .over the whole length of each unit'when its wheels are midway between the ends of the unit and may be supported unyieldingly thereby; but 'When the wheels come :to the end.-portions of their-ail at :the butt joint, the weight is concentrated on the end of the unit and as ".fOlllldiHlPIflCllCfi will often cause theendofrthe ice unit to yield downwardly, or sidewise toward or from the roadway, thus shifting the unit out of alignment with the adjacent unit at the butt joint, with objections such as those above mentioned.

It has been proposed heretofore to couple the units together at the butt joint in the attempt to overcome these objections, but such couplings have failed to fully accom plish their intended purposes and have introduced complications and in some cases require assembling operations that call for more highly skilled labor in the setting up of the units and coupling them than is usually avail able.

Among the objects of the present invention are to provide an improved road form of the general aligned unit type above described, comprising:

Means to insure accurate alignment of the abutting road form units, at the butt joint thereof;

Means to distribute load forces on the end of one unit, over both units at the butt joint;

Improved means to couple the units together at the butt joint;

An improved unitary assembly of coupling and unit;

Improvement means to support load forces at the butt joint;

Coupling means for aligned units having an improved mode of operation.

With these objects in view and others which will poem to those skilled in the art the embodiment of the invention disclosed herein comprises, in general the following structure and mode of operation.

While aseries of road form units may ,be set up for use, the invention will be described here as embodied in two .of them.

A first and second road form unit are disposed in endto-end abutting relation at a butt joint.

The unitsare constructed to be secured upon theground by stakes and stake boxes generally as heretofore proposed.

A coupler is carried by the second unit near its abutting end.

The two units adjacent their abutting ends have longitudinal guideways for the coupler, which are mutually aligned and the coupler is moved on the guideways of the second unit to overlap the butt joint and become en gaged with the guideways of the first unit.

Wedging surfaces are provided on the coupler and on the first unit and the coupler is driven into position to tightly wedge said surfaces, and they then exert forces which take up clearance or looseness between the coupler and the units, rigidly joining them, as the .cou-pler iis driven tofinalwedged coupling position.

The coupler comprises a stake ,box, and when the coupler is in its final wedged coupling positiomholes in the coupler stake box and in the first unit come into ,alignment and a stakev is .driven through the holes .into the ground; the stake thus holding the coupler in its final wedged coupling position.

The coupler stake box in the final coupling position of the coupler provides a rigid brace supporting the ends of bothabutting units.

The coupler is retractable on the guideways of the second or coupler carrying unit sufficiently to dispose allof its parts inwardly of the abutting end of the unit, leaving the end of the unit clear, to facilitateipositioningthe ends of abutting the units together, and tofacilitate removal of any unit of a series from its aligned and abutting relation with other units if necessary for replacement.

The coupler and the unit Whichcarries it istmade as a unitary assembly, as follows.

The longitudinalguideways for guiding the .coupleron :theunit are generally of groovef rm, and. spaced apart and with the open sides of the grooves mutually confronting, and the coupler has longitudinal parts that telescope into the groove from one end of the unit. Stops are provided which limit longitudinal movement of the coupler in each direction.

The coupler is thus trapped in assembled relation on the unit; and cannot become accidently detached from it and mutilated by careless handling, nor misplaced.

An embodiment of the invention is fully disclosed in the following description taken in connection with the accompanying drawing in which:

Fig. 1 is a top plan view of two road form units in abutting relation as aforesaid and a coupler assembled with one of them ready for use;

Fig. 2 is a cross sectional view from the plane 2-2 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 2 is a .cross sectional view from the plane 3-3 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 4 is a view similar to Fig. 1 but with the coupler thereof moved to coupling position.

Referring to the drawing there is shown at 1 an elongated road form unit of the general type referred to in the premises hereof; fabricated from sheet steel; of L- shape in cross section, and in its position of use, comprising an upright front wall 3 and a horizontal rearwardly extending base 4, at a right angle to each other.

The top of the front wall 3 is bent over inwardly into a downwardly concave top channel 5 comprising a channel web 6 and a channel flange 7. The channel 5 provides, exteriorly, a longitudinal trackway on which wheels of a concrete spreading and surfacing machine may roll.

The rearward edge portion of the base 4 is bent upwardly at about 45 to provide a base flange 8.

At spaced points along the length of the unit are a plurality of stake boxes 9, in the form of downwardly open channels extending diagonally upwardly from the rear of the base.

At the lower end of these channel stake boxes, the channel web and flanges 11-11 thereof are formed to fit upon the rearward portion of the horizontal base 4 and on the upwardly bent base flange 8; and the upper end of the diagonal channel web 10 engages under the top channel flange 7, and the upper ends of the channels .flanges 11 engage the inside of the front wall 3; and

these channel parts are welded to the said parts which they engage.

In the channel web 10 of the stake box and in the base 4 are vertically aligned holes 12 and 13.

In practice the base 4 is laid on the ground, and a pointed round steel stake 14 is telescoped downwardly through the aligned holes 12 and 13 and driven into the ground.

Horizontally aligned slots 15-45 are provided in the opposite stake box channel flanges 11--11 and a steel wedge 16 is projected therethrough, with an edge of the wedge engaging the side of the stake, whereby the several stake boxes and therefore the unit, are rigidly engaged with the stakes to prevent shifting of the unit on the ground and to hold the front wall in a preselected vertical position.

In practice a series of such units all alike are secured to the ground with their front walls 3 in alignment and their ends abutting at butt joints. Two units are shown, one at 1 on the left side of Fig. l and the other at 2 on the right side of Fig. l; and the left end of the unit 2 abuts against the right end of unit 1 at a butt joint 17.

It is desirable to have the mutually abutting ends of the units in actual contact at the butt joint 17, and to avoid any crack or clearance space therebetween, and this is particularly desirable at the top channels 5. It frequently happens that in adjusting the position of one unit on the ground to bring it into end abutting engagement with another, dirt on the surface of the ground may work in between the bases 4-4 of the units and hold pler.

. 4 them apart and prevent said abutting contact. To avoid this and to insure actual abutting contact as referred to, the ends of the units are cut back slightly out of the vertical, leaving a space 18 between the bases 44 and between the lower portions of the front walls 3-3 of the abutting units.

The unit 2 near its abutting end has a short length of angle section steel bar 19 disposed with one angle leg 20 on the underside of the base flange 8 and welded thereto, and the other leg 21 projecting upwardly from the base flange at a right angle thereto.

A longitudinal upwardly open groove 22 is thus provided at the rear of the base 4, the walls of which are: a rearward portion of the base 4, the base flange 8, and the angle leg 21.

The unit 1 has a similar length of angle section steel bar 23 thereon providing another and like groove 22, the two grooves 22 being disposed in longitudinal alignment by the alignment of the units.

The under concave sides of the top channels 5 of the units 1 and 2 above described also provide grooves 25 downwardly open, and opposite to the grooves 22, and continuous on the abutting units.

These grooves 25 and 22 function as longitudinal guideways for a coupler designed generally as 26, now to be described.

A coupler 26 is mounted on the left end of each unit of the series of units, and as a part of a unitary assembly of coupler and unit.

In the drawing, the coupler of only unit 2 is shown; in Fig. 1 being shown in its normal assembled relation therewith; and in Fig. 2 being shown moved to a coupling position to couple the units 1 and 2.

The coupler 26 comprises in general an L-shaped main frame 27 extending longitudinally along and nested within the L-shaped unit 2 and of suitable longitudinal length as will appear.

The coupling frame 27 comprises a front wall 28 juxtaposed upon the wall 3 of the unit 2. At the top of the front wall 28 is a downwardly open channel 29 comprising a web 30 and a flange 31 nested within the top channel 5 of the unit 2. A coupling base 32 at right angles to the coupling front wall 28 lies on the unit base 4 and extends rearwardly thereon to the flange 8 of the unit base 4.

A diagonal coupler stake box 33 of downwardly open channel form has its web 34 and flanges 35-35 at their upper ends welded to the channel flange 31 and front wall 28 of the coupler.

The lower end of the coupler stake box channel has its flanges 35 welded to the coupling base 32.

By this construction it will be seen that the coupler 26 including its frame 27 and stake box 33, is trapped between and embraced by the upper and lower grooves 25 and 22 of the unit 2, as described above, and by the provision of suitable clearance is made slidable longitudinally in said grooves.

The coupler 26 is assembled with the unit 2 preferably as a factory operation by telescoping it inwardly into the said grooves from the left end of the unit 2 of Fig. l.

A stop is provided to stop said inward telescoping movement when all parts of the coupler have been moved inwardly clear of the left end of the unit. This stop can take various forms and be variously located, but a suitable form comprises a lug 37 welded upon the right side of the stake box 33 and projecting above it, and a lug 38 welded on top of the angle bar 19 in the path of the lug 37 as the coupler is moved toward the right.

To keep the coupler from becoming disassembled from the unit, with the liability that it may be misplaced, lost, or damaged, and to avoid having to reassemble it at the time of using the road form, a second stop is provided to stop outward sliding movement of the cou- This second step isalso used to perform another function to be described. This step may take various forms and be variously located.

The form shown comprises a second lug 40 welded on top of the angle bar 19 and spaced from the lug 38 and disposed in the path of the lug 37 on the coupler stake box as the stake box moves toward the left.

As will appear, in the operation of the coupler, it is slidingly moved outwardly, toward the left on the unit 2 to a predetermined final coupling position, and it is desired to have the ends of the units 1 and 2 firmly abutting when this final position is reached. By suitably positioning the second lug 40 longitudinally on the angle bar 19, it will be engaged by and stop movement of the coupler at its final position, and with the unit ends abutting.

As is apparent, the coupler when thus assembled with the unit 2, is trapped against transverse withdrawal from the unit 2 by the upper and lower grooves 25 and 22 and is trapped against longitudinal withdrawal by the two stop lugs 38 and 40. j

The rearward edge of the coupler base 32, at the left end thereof as viewed in Fig. l, is cut away on an inclination, providing a wedging or camming surface 41; and upon the base 4 of unit 1, is welded a block 42 having an inclined or camming surface 43 longitudinally in line with and parallel with the said camming surface 41; and these surfaces 41 and 43 function in the operation of the coupler to be described.

In operation of the units 1 and 2 and the coupler 26 described above, the unit 1 is set up and secured by its stakes 14 as described and the unit 2 set up in end abutting relation to the unit 1 as in Fig. l in position to be staked. The coupler 26 on the unit 2, is moved toward the left, guided above by the channel groove 25 at the top of the two units and common to them, and guided below first by the groove 22 forwardly of the angle bar 19 and then by the corresponding groove 22 forwardly of the angle bar 23; the coupler thus moving to a position overlapping the abutting ends of both of the units as shown in Fig. 4.

The coupler 26 will come to a final position of symmetry overlapping the units equally but before this position is reached, the camming surface 41 on the coupler base 32 engages the camming surface 43 on the base of unit 1 and begins to ride up on it, and begins to exert a camming action between the coupler 26 and the units 12 which takes up clearance between them. The coupler 26 is then forcibly driven (by any suitable means) farther toward the left to increase the camming action and engage the coupler and the two units tightly together, the coupler ultimately being driven to its aforesaid final position.

The final position is reached when the lug 37 on the coupler stake box 33 abuts upon the lug 40 on the angle bar 19.

If for any reason the end of the unit 2 is not actually in abutting contact with the end of the unit 1, while the coupler is being driven toward its final position, the stop lug 40, which is a part of the unit 2, will be so far toward the right the the stop lug 37 which is a part of the coupler, will abut upon it before the coupler reaches its final position; and as the coupler is then forced to go on toward the left, the abutting engagement of these stop lugs will move the unit 2 toward the unit 1 until they do abut at their ends.

The coupler stake box channel web 34 has a hole 44 therethrough; and the coupler base 32, has a hole 45 therethrough vertically aligned with the hole 44.

When the coupler is in its said final position, but only then, these holes align vertically with a hole 46 provided in the base of unit 1.

When the coupler is in its said final position, a round steel stake 47 is driven down through all three aligned 6 holes 44-45-46 and .into the ground. This locks the coupler against shifting and prevents relieving of the engagement at the cam'rnin'g surfaces and prevents the coupler from coming loose.

Wedge slots 48 are provided in the flanges 35 of the coupler channel stake box and a wedge 49 is driven through the slots to engage the side of the stake to further lock the coupler against shifting from its final position.

The coupler 26 aligns the units 1 and 2 at their butt joint 17 by forcing the upright front walls 3 thereof to lie flat against the overlapping upright wall 28 of the coupler.

The coupler also acts to support the abutting ends of the units 1 and 2 against yielding downwardly when load comes upon them, for example, the load of a concrete spreading and smoothing machine.

In this respect the coupler channel 29 at its top overlaps and nests under the top channels 55 of both units 1--2. Any force tending to cause the end of either unit to yield downwardly, is therefore transmitted, to the entire coupler and thence to the bases 4--4 of both units and distributed between them.

The stake box 33 of the coupler in this respect acts as a diagonal load carrying strut, between the top channels 5-5 of the units and the unit bases 44.

I claim:

1. A road form construction comprising a pair of elongated road form units, in end-to-end abutting relation; each unit being L-shape in cross section provided by a vertical front wall and a horizontal base wall; each front wall bent over rearwardly and downwardly at the top to provide a downwardly open top channel; a coupler L-shape in cross-section provided by a horizontal base wall, and a vertical front wall bent rearwardly and downwardly at the top to provide a downwardly open top channel; a stake box on the rearward side of the coupler comprising a box channel, the web of the box channel extending upwardly diagonally from a welded juncture with the coupler base to the coupler top channel flange, and having a'welded juncture therewith, and the side flanges of the box channel having a welded juncture with the front wall of the coupler at a point diagonally below the welded juncture with the top channel flange; longitudinal guide elements on the respective units adjacent their abutting ends providing upwardly diagonally open grooves embracing the lower end of the stake box; the coupler Walls and stake box overlapping the adjacent ends of the two units; the said coupler walls and top channels nested Within the said walls and top channels of the two units, and maintained nested by the guide elements, thereby maintaining alignment of the unit walls; vertically aligned holes in the box channel web, the coupler base, and one of the unit bases, for receiving a stake driven into the group therethrough.

2. The construction described in claim 1 and in which the coupler is slidable longitudinally back and forth in the guide elements and top channels of the units, and first and second spaced stops are provided on one unit engageable alternately by a stop on the coupler, upon alternate sliding movements of the coupler, and the coupler is stopped by the first stop in one direction in said overlapping condition and, by the second stop in the other direction in a position with all parts of the coupler inwardly beyond the end of the said one unit.

3. The construction described in claim 2 and in which when the coupler is moved to said first position, an inclined surface provided on the other said unit is engaged wedgingly by an inclined surface provided on the coupler, disposed to tighten the said nesting engagement of the coupler and unit parts.

(References on following page) UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,473,730 Loxterman Nov. 13, 1923 ;1,755,541 Heltzel Apr. 22, 1930 5 Wolf Jan. 5, 1932 8 Hirschhom July 4, Heltzel Jan. 23, Yates Dec. 29, Yates -2 Nov. 1, Heltzel Dec. 4, 

